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Appendix Carry…Thousands of Thugs Can’t be Wrong

“95% of criminals carry their guns on their strong side, mostly stuck in the front of their bodies, inside the waistband without a holster.”

– From a US Secret Service Seminar on detecting concealed weapons

Why are all the thugs carrying pistols in their waistbands in front of the hip? And why do most cops and CCW permit holders carry behind the hip? Are there lessons to be learned from the bad guys? As one of the few cops who actually carries his gun in the front “appendix” position, I say “yes”.

When I started out in law enforcement, my off duty carry gun was a .38 snub nose revolver. Fresh out of the academy and not knowing much, I bought a thin, suede, inside the pants holster with a crappy spring steel clip and started carrying the gun everywhere I went. With no one to tell me how and where to carry, I just stuck the gun and holster inside my waistband in the “appendix” position…strong side in front of my hip. If the circumference of my waist was a clock with the belt buckle being 12-noon, I placed the gun somewhere between one and two o’clock. Why? Because that was where it was most comfortable.

As times changed, I learned more about guns and had some more disposable cash. I upgraded to a semi-auto pistol for my off-duty carry gun and started carrying behind the hip. In the mid-1990s no one made quality appendix-style holsters for most semi-autos and no one carried that way. I just followed the herd and did the same thing as all the other people I saw. I carried my gun behind my hip.

Everything was fine. I carried a large variety of guns that way over the course of many years. I never had any problems. Then one day several years ago I competed in the “National Tactical Invitational”, a 2-day, invitation only shooting match that combines target shooting, IDPA style stages, building clearing tactics, and force on force scenarios. For the force on force scenarios we had to use their guns (Smith & Wesson .38 revolvers loaded with paintball rounds). Before competing, they patted me down to check me for “real” weapons and handed me a .38 snub and a flimsy inside the waistband holster. Without even thinking, I stuck it in the front of my pants, appendix style, just like I used to do and entered the arena.

During the course of the 3-hour run of scenarios in their “town”, I found the appendix style to work very well. I consistently outdrew my competitors and teammates from the seated position and even seemed to be faster than usual in the standing scenarios as well. In one scenario, I even surprised a bad guy by concealing my draw with a large notebook I was forced to carry. I knew trouble was eminent and I preemptively drew my gun, keeping my drawstroke and the gun hidden behind the notebook. The bad guy had quite a surprise when he went for his gun and found himself looking down the barrel of my .38 before he could draw. I was starting to like this appendix position better and better! I knew I couldn’t have pulled off that move if I had carried my gun behind my hip.

Weapons

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"I got involved in wound ballistics and what it really took to stop a threat during residency in Philadelphia because I had a friend on the police force who lost his job for use of excessive force by shooting somebody, I think it was, 18 times, and I always thought, maybe he needed to shoot that person 18 times to stop the threat."

Industry Day at the Range has grown by leaps and bounds since its inception last decade. The event has become something of a SHOT Show in miniature. Yesterday’s Industry Day involved more than 100 exhibitors of rifles, pistols, shotguns, gear, apparel, and even archery equipment.

It doesn’t seem to be a “year of the gun” but more of a “year of the gun stuff,” as many of the firearms manufacturers seem to be circling the wagons a bit and simply giving some of their biggest hitters a facelift. That isn’t to say there aren't a few standouts, though.

The biggest challenge for me was to narrow down those firearms and products that are applicable to law enforcement and try to keep my eye from wandering to those I think would just plain be fun to shoot!

One of my biggest frustrations is the sound intrusion that occurs because of my sunglasses when wearing earmuffs. FullPro Protective Gear has a solution called Sound Vision that eliminates this annoying problem completely.

With its Micro T-2, Aimpoint has taken a proven winner and made it even better by adding flip-up lens caps, increased protection for the windage and elevation turrets, and a new lens coating to enhance clarity.

Warrior Tech, LLC took the chamber flag concept and improved upon it greatly. The company's new SafeCycle chamber verification device is similar to a chamber plug in that it provides quick and accurate visual confirmation that the rifle's chamber is empty, but goes above and beyond that in a few ways.

Where else than an exhibition for hunting and law enforcement firearms are you going to see t-shirts asking, "Have You Hugged Your Colt Today?", exhorting you to "Buy A Gun—Annoy a Liberal,” or celebrating diversity in the form of a collage of Smith & Wessons, Glocks, and Kimbers? Hey, it gives me the warm fuzzies.

Made to fit nicely on your ankle or in your pocket. The G42 is small, but it retains all the classic Glock controls and the feel of the Austrian gunmaker’s larger pistols. When you grab it, you’ll feel the ergonomics are pure Glock.

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